The 5-9, 185-pound Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) senior cornerback yielded offers from Syracuse, Rutgers, Boston College, Army and Old Dominion, but says the Orange recruited him most diligently down the stretch.

"I just love everything about Cuse," Ellison told NJ.com following his announcement. "I grew up a Cuse fan for basketball and now I have the opportunity to go to Syracuse to play football on scholarship. It's just crazy and it's a blessing."

A second-team all-state selection by the Star-Ledger in 2013, Ellison appeared headed to the Orange for months, but took his time announcing his intentions as he assessed his options.

"My mom and I just wanted to see how the summer played out with the schools I was interested in," he said.

NJ.com caught up with Don Bosco legendary head coach Greg Toal in May where he explained what Ellison has meant to his program over the past couple years.

Daivon Ellison (Photo courtesy of Ellison)

"Daivon is a heck of an athlete,” said Toal. “He's a tremendous hitter. He's a tough, hard-nosed tackler. It's amazing for a guy that's not that big, the impact he has when he hits people. It's pretty amazing. And he's made a lot of plays.

“Obviously, we used him late in the (2013) season a lot on offense. And he had an outstanding three-or-four games at the end of the season. We were a much better team with him on offense. He made a few big runs and made a lot of plays for us offensively and defensively. In order for us to be good, I think we definitely have to keep him healthy and get him on offense and defense."

In 2013, Ellison accumulated 42 tackles, 12 pass break-ups, three interceptions, two forced fumbles, a rushing TD, receiving TD and kick return TD. He was highly instrumental in the Ironmen (7-4, 3-1) winning six of their last seven games.

A three-star recruit according to Rivals.com, Ellison is the third player in the NJ.com Top 50 to commit to Syracuse within the recruiting class of 2015, following South Brunswick running back Dontae Strickland (22) and Union City athlete Daiquan Kelly (17).

"We're the only ones committed from Jersey, so we gotta come in and make a statement," he said.

Ellison has set some lofty goals for his future collegiate experience.

"The No. 1 goal is to win the national championship and the second is to be ACC champs," Ellison said. "And I plan on coming in and making some noise."